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We all do our best to serve our families food that’s safe and healthy, but some common myths about food safety may surprise you.

Myth #1: I don’t need to wash fruits or vegetables if I’m going to peel them.Fact: Because it’s easy to transfer bacteria from the peel or rind when you’re cutting to the inside of your fruits and veggies, it’s important to wash all produce, even if you plan to peel it.

Myth #2: To get rid of any bacteria on my meat, poultry, or seafood, I should rinse off.Fact: Rinsing meat, poultry, or seafood with water can increase your chance of food poisoning by splashing juices and any bacteria they might contain onto your sink and counters.

Myth #3: If I really want my produce to be safe, I should wash fruits and vegetables with soap or detergent before I use them.Fact: It’s best not to use soaps or detergents on produce since these products can linger on foods and are not safe for consumption. Using clean, lukewarm, running water is actually the best way to remove bacteria and wash produce safely.

Myth #4: I saw on the Internet that I can cook my whole meal in my coffee maker.Fact: Cooking your meal in a coffee maker is not an approved or tested method for safe preparation of foods. Besides, the coffee flavor residue would transfer to anything placed in the coffee maker.

The incidence of people preserving food by canning in the oven or in the dishwasher is increasing as many gardeners and home cooks are looking for a shortcut to preserve their fresh produce at home. However, these are unsafe canning practices. Using unsafe canning practices can cause a deadly foodborne illness called botulism, which is virtually undetectable.

It is estimated that there are 55 actual cases of botulism annually in the United States. Although this is small in comparison to other foodborne illnesses, the death rate associated with foodborne botulism is as high as 17.3 percent. The cause for each case was inappropriate home canning methods, not recognizing the signs of food spoilage, and unawareness of the risk of botulism from home canned foods.

Signs of food spoilage in home canned products include:

Bulging lids and unsealed jars

Dried food starting at the top of the jar

Rising air bubbles and unnatural color

Unnatural odors

Spurting liquid

Cotton-like mold growth on top of the food surface and underneath the lid

Botulism causes a very deadly type of foodborne illness that begins usually within 72 hours after consuming the contaminated food. Symptoms can include digestive upset, blurred or double vision, difficulty swallowing or breathing, paralysis, and eventually death.

Canning in the oven and dishwasher does not heat the food in the jars to a temperature high enough to kill any and all pathogens that may be present in the food. It is important to remember that a sealed jar does not mean food inside the jar is safe to eat. It takes less heat to seal a jar than it takes to make the contents safe. Depending on the type of food, ALL canning must now be canned in a boiling water canner (high acid foods) or a pressure canner (low acid foods).

To ensure that your home canned goods are safe, be sure you are using recipes that follow the most current canning guidelines. Significant changes were made in 1994 that are critical to the safety of some processes. These included changes in canning tomatoes, pickles, and meat processing. Also, other recipes were reviewed and updated for safety and food quality. In 2006 and again in 2009, canning guidelines were reviewed and revised. For this reason, all recipes should be 1994 or later.

Handwashing is one of the most effective means to reduce the spread of infectious disease. It also helps protect against food borne illness outbreaks. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately half of all food borne illness outbreaks is due to people not washing their hands properly.

A recent study at Michigan State University found that only 5 percent of people (consumers, not food service workers) in a college town using restrooms properly washed their hands. The study observed over 3,000 people after they had gone to the restroom and discovered that about 10 percent (384 people) skipped washing their hands all together and about one-third (33%) did not use soap. Of those who did wash their hands, the average time spent doing so was about six seconds. The recommended time by the CDC is 15 seconds.

To properly wash your hands follow these steps:

Wet hands to help loosen dirt, oil, and germs.

Apply soap, preferably antibacterial, to remove the dirt, oil, and germs from hands.

Rub your hands together for 15 to 20 seconds to make sure all parts of both hands are washed. Don’t forget about cleaning around your fingernails, which

are ideal for trapping dirt and germs.

Rinse off all the soap and loosened dirt from the hands under running water.

Deciding what food is safe to eat and what food should be tossed can be confusing, given the various terms used with dates printed on food containers. The USDA Food
Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) defines each of the terms as follows:

A “Sell-By” date tells the store how long to display the product for sale. You should buy the product before the date expires.

A “Best if Used By (or Before)” date is recommended for best flavor or quality. It is not a purchase or safety date.

A “Use-By” date is the last date recommended for the use of the product while at peak quality. The date has been determined by the manufacturer of the product.

“Closed or coded dates” are packing numbers for use by the manufacturer.

For safety concerns, these dates are more important for perishable foods like meat, poultry, dairy, and eggs. It is recommended to use food by the “use-by date.” Smelling food to determine if it is safe is not always effective. Many bacteria that cause foodborne illnesses cannot be seen, smelled, or tasted. Even if you think the food— such as lunch- meat—smells and looks fine, it is best not to consume after the “use-by” or expiration date. If you want to keep the food longer than that date, freeze it. Milk that has been properly refrigerated (40 degrees F) is safe to consume for one week past the “sell by” date.

For concerns about canned foods, high-acid foods (such as tomatoes or pineapple) will have the best quality if used within 12 to 18 months. Low-acid foods (such as meat, fish, or vegetables) will retain the best quality if used within 2 to 5 years. These rules apply only if the can remains in good condition and is stored in a cool, clean, dry place. Use the first in, first out (FIFO) method to be sure the oldest cans are used first. When putting away groceries, place the recently purchased items behind the existing food. It is recommended that home-canned foods be used within one year for best quality.

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Convenience means different things to different people; to many it means saving time. Food delivered by mail is a popular, convenient gift idea. Because ordering food through the mail may cause concern about food safety, it’s imperative to develop some mental checklists for how both food and packaging should look when it arrives. This is especially true for perishable foods that must be handled in a timely manner to prevent foodborne illness.

The following will help determine if the foods have been handled properly.

Make sure the company meets state or federal requirements for mail delivery.

Make sure the company sends perishable foods with a cold source, such as dry ice.

Make sure perishable items and the outer package are labeled “Keep Refrigerated” to alert the recipient. Food should be delivered as quickly as possible – ideally, overnight.

Cross-contamination is the physical movement or transfer of harmful bacteria from one person, object, or place to another. Preventing cross-contamination is a key factor in preventing foodborne illness. Be sure to follow a game plan for food safety when you tailgate this fall:

Recently, social media outlets (e.g., Facebook) and news media have discussed “Lean Finely Textured Beef” (LFTB), which has unfortunately been labeled “pink slime.” Many Americans are left wondering if LFTB is safe. The answer is yes, LFTB is safe.

What is Lean Finely Textured Beef (LFTB)?
LFTB is a beef product that results from using food processing equipment to separate the small, irregular-shaped pieces of lean meat from fat trimmings left over after larger roasts, steaks, and other cuts are removed from a beef carcass.

Are these products regulated and inspected?
Yes. LFTB is beef, and all beef products are strictly regulated and inspected by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). LFTB products have a 20-year excellent food safety record.

How are these lean beef trimmings processed?
The trimmings are first heated to about 100°F to soften and separate the fat from the meat. The lean meat is then treated with a puff of food-grade ammonium hydroxide gas to kill bacteria. The result is a very low fat (95+% lean) beef product that is added to foods such as ground beef, sausage, and lunch meats.

Is it true that these trimmings previously were used only for pet food and oil and were unfit for human consumption, as one media outlet claimed?Trimmings were used for pet food and oil. Advancements in food processing technology 20 years ago, however, facilitated the recovery of a high quality protein that had previously been used in pet food. Recovery of this protein makes more efficient use of our limited food supply and contributes to a more sustainable food system.

Why is ammonia used to produce lean finely textured beef?
Food grade ammonium hydroxide (basically ammonia + water) differs from household ammonia used in cleaning products. Ammonium hydroxide, FDA approved since 1974, is used in many food products such as puddings, gelatins, cheese, breakfast cereals, egg products, and baked goods, and can occur naturally in food.

Because they are ground up, ground or blended beef products carry a higher risk for foodborne pathogens to be introduced throughout the product, making them less likely to be killed during cooking compared with those on the surface of wholemuscle cuts.

A puff of the ammonium hydroxide gas is used in the processing of LFTB to raise the pH and help control harmful bacteria that may be present. These bacteria could make someone ill if the product were not cooked thoroughly.

When any form of lean finely textured beef (LFTB) is blended into ground beef, will it be labeled?
Because it is 100% beef, LFTB is not singled out as a separate ingredient on ground beef packages. Beef is beef.

What do the experts say about its safety?
Experts such as Dr. Gary Acuff at Texas A&M University and Dr. John Floros at Pennsylvania State University have examined these products and say that all forms of lean finely textured beef are safe when produced in compliance with USDA regulations.

What do the food safety data show?
USDA data show that the incidence of E. coli in fresh ground beef has been declining significantly over the past decade. The number of USDA ground beef samples testing positive for E. coli O157:H7 dropped 55 percent between 2000 and 2010. Lean finely textured beef products have been a part of that success story.

Cooks love to experiment with salsa recipes and many want to preserve their winning combination by canning. Most salsa recipes are a mixture of low-acid foods (such as onions and peppers), with high-acid foods (such as tomatoes).

The type and amount of ingredients as well as the preparation method are important considerations to safely preserve homemade salsa. Improperly home-canned salsas or other tomato-pepper combinations have been implicated in botulism poisonings. A USDA-tested recipe using the type and amount listed for each ingredient can ensure a safe, home-canned salsa.

Changing the type or amount of ingredients alters the acidity of the product, making it unsafe. If you have a personal favorite that is not a tested recipe, it is best to eat your creation fresh, store it up to one week in the refrigerator (40°F or below), or freeze it. Most salsas should retain good quality for up to one year in a freezer maintained at 0°F.

Acidity – Acid ingredients help preserve canned salsas and make them safe to store on the shelf. The acids are usually commercially bottled vinegar (at least 5% acidity) or lemon juice. The amount of vinegar or lemon juice in a recipe for canning cannot be reduced.

Tomatoes – Paste tomatoes, such as Roma, have more flesh or solid tissue, producing thicker salsas. Select only disease-free, preferably vine-ripened, firm tomatoes. Do not can tomatoes from dead or frost-killed vines.

Peppers – Use only high quality peppers, choosing your favorite such as sweet bell, jalapeno, habanero, etc. Do not exceed the total amount (pounds or cups) of peppers in any recipe.

Cross-contamination is a potential risk when preparing a variety of foods. It happens when harmful bacteria from one food, especially raw meat, is transferred to another food. It usually happens when cutting boards, knives, counter tops, and your hands are not washed after handling each food item.

Steps to prevent cross-contamination include:

When shopping, keep produce and meats separate by putting each in plastic bags. Make sure the grocery bagger keeps them separate as well.

Always use a clean cutting board. If possible use different boards for fresh produce and raw animal products. Also, do not use excessively worn cutting boards; replace them.

Wash dishes and counter tops with hot soapy water before and after preparing each food item. When refrigerating food, make sure juices from raw meat and other animal products do not drip onto other foods. Keep them in sealed plastic bags or containers and stored below ready-to-eat food items.

Wash your hands before and after handling food, allowing about 20 seconds while using soap and warm water.